44% Of Online Voters Believe Government Shouldn't Dictate what Schools Serve

An online poll recently discovered that 44% of voters aren't happy with the decisions of government and school boards over what should be served at school, while 27% are happy and 28% are undecided. The online survey looked at a recent news story that several schools in the United States have banned Flamin' Hot Cheetos because they contain large amounts of sodium and fat. Some schools even said they would take away the snacks if parents sent them anyway as they can trigger brain responses similar to those of addicts. 36% of Tellwut voters believe this decision should not be made by schools or governments and 32% wondered why this snack in particular was being targeted as there are many more snacks allowed that are just as bad. 26% believe this was a good decision and 24% say it's not a big deal. One Tellwut member comments “Schools should only have control on dishes they serve, not what a kid brings in his/her lunch from home. Families spend their money the way that they want and the food should not be taken away just because the schools do not think it is ok.” Another member counters “Schools have to be mindful of foods that cause negative behavior changes to help maintain appropriate behaviors. The survey asked about food courts in colleges and universities and if it makes sense to ban certain foods in elementary and high school if it`s available once they go to college anyway. 51% of voters don’t agree with banning food anywhere while 24% do agree with banning these foods and 24% weren't sure how they feel. Although by the time kids enter college they are adults, terms like “Freshman 15” where freshman gain around 15 pounds in the first year of college due to fast food, alcohol intake and high fat cafeteria foods demonstrate that perhaps they're not mature enough to make decisions about their food choices and monitoring these choices wouldn't be such a bad thing. When asked if this trend of government and school board interference is something that will continue to grow, 56% yes that this will be something that increases. Many Tellwut members commented that the school and government should leave the parenting to the parent and mind their own business. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says that the number of overweight adolescents has tripled since 1980 and among young children it has doubled. So is it a good idea to leave the food choices up to the parents if child obesity rates are climbing? Although it's difficult to prove that every obese child is a result of poor eating habits, there are some trends that have continued to grow that do contribute to these numbers. These trends include increasing amounts of children eating away from home, more children eating high calorie snacks, there has been a decline in childhood breakfast consumption and portion sizes are increasing. Furthermore only 21% of young people eat the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables each day, soda consumption of child has increased while milk consumption has decreased. Now that you have read more about childhood obesity and how child hood eating habits can increase these numbers, have you changed your mind about the schools banning certain foods? or Do you still think parents know best? Leave a comment below and let us know!